Fishing rod holders of various configurations are well-known in the art. A fishing rod holder typically is used to hold a fishing rod in an operational position on the stern of a boat during trolling operations. In this regard, the rod holders are normally mounted to a gunwale or other surface in the vicinity of the stern. The use of the fishing rod holder enables one's hands to remain free to attend to other activities within the boat and further permits a fisherman to attend to a number of different poles substantially simultaneously. The use of a plurality of rod holders also allows one to place bait and various lures at assorted depths during trolling. As should be understood, the use of a plurality of fishing rods permits experimentation between the different rods to determine the optimum fishing depths for catching the fish desired and to make adjustments accordingly. This activity, of course, maximizes the number of fish that may be caught.
Many of the prior art fishing rod holders damage the gunwale or otherwise compromise the structural or aesthetic integrity of the boat when they are mounted on same by utilizing drilling or hole punching techniques or further by scratching or denting various surfaces, such defacement occurring as a by-product of the mounting procedure. When the attachment or mounting is permanent, the result may be displeasing for both aesthetic and utilitarian purposes. For example, the space dedicated to permanently mounted fishing rod holders could conceivably be utilized for other boating or fishing accessories when not used for the fishing rod holders.
Accordingly, a need has existed for a fishing rod holder that may be readily and removably mounted in a non-invasive manner with respect to the boat and that may be easily manufactured at low cost and employ other features of benefit to the user.